Horrible Beginning: A Mother's Secret Prequel short
by J Garibay
Summary: The fight that ended the happy ending and eventually set in motion the events of the Mother's Secret series.
1. The fight

Yuzu stands at the window looking out on to the city lights, their glow giving a faint blue on her face. She is still wearing her casual clothes from the day, she didn't feel like being in a rush to change. Distant clouds give ominous flashes of lighting as she turns to look at the front door of their small apartment, typical for a young married couple.

Yuzu turns and slowly walks to a nearby table as her eyes drift to a nearby phone. She had got a call from Momokino, calling to congratulate Mei on her appointment to Chairman of the Aihara Academy. While Yuzu was happy at the news, she wondered why Mei didn't call and tell her herself.

The door to the apartment unlatches and quietly opens, catching Yuzu's attention

"Welcome home Mei!" Yuzu says as she stands, presenting herself with a smile.

Mei does not answer, nor does she make eye contact. She brings in a feeling of melancholy into the apartment, causing Yuzu to feel uneasy.

"Hey, everything ok?" Yuzu asks.

Mei snaps out of some spell she was under as her sad eyes meet Yuzu's.

"Um yeah, I guess, "Mei answers with a subdued demeanor.

Mei takes a seat at the table as Yuzu serves a drink to her. Smiling, Yuzu sits in the chair closest to Mei. Mei just stares into the glass of clear liquid.

"Mei, what's wrong? Did I do something that I should not have?" Yuzu inquiries.

"No, you did nothing wrong," came a quiet answer.

"Did something happen at the meeting with the board of directors at the Academy?"

Mei says nothing but just nods while looking down.

"What? Mei, you're beginning to scare me."

"The board has approved my appointment to the Chairman of the Academy, providing I finish college first."

"That's wonderful Mei! Everything we worked for is paying off-"

"They also added another condition."

The line filled Yuzu with sudden dread for some unknown reason.

"What is it?" Yuzu asks.

"The board's more conservative majority didn't feel that a woman married to another woman would be the best role model for the students so they..." Mel sadly says.

Yuzu claps Mei's hand, "What? What did they say?"

"They will consent to the appointment if our marriage is annulled."

Yuzu pulls back in disbelief, "You did tell them no right? You did find some compromise that didn't involve our marriage right?"

Mei doesn't look at Yuzu, she sits still and quiet. A horrible realization hits Yuzu hard, chilling her to the bone when she remembers the phone call from earlier.

"Oh God, you consented to the condition did you?"

Mei closes her eyes tightly to prevent tears to escape from her eyes.

"I had no choice, they would have bogged down everything and it would take years, even decades of court battles go get-"

"I can't believe what I'm hearing! You threw away all we are and all we were going to be, for this appointment?"

"Yuzu, please understand, they control-"

"THEY DON'T CONTROL ME!"

"YUZU YOU ARE BEING IN MY WAY!"

Yuzu grabs her shirt at her chest as Mei's words cut through her heart.

"I'm in your way?" Yuzu says as she angrily rises from her chair and begins to leave the room, "Well, you won't have to worry about that anymore."

Mei rises to follow Yuzu to the bedroom and stands as a sullen witness as Yuzu hurriedly puts clothes in a duffel bag. Yuzu pushes past Mei and moves down the hallway.

Mei realizing that what is happening tries to get Yuzu to stop by grabbing the bag. Yuzu pulls hard causing Mei to fall back against the wall causing a picture to fall off the wall and cracking its glass cover.

"No, Don't leave, " Mei whimpers as she regains her footing.

Yuzu opens the front door, looking back angrily as she does.

"I'll be at moms, You can have your lawyers send over any documents needed to be signed there."

"Yuzu, we can-"

SLAM! The door closes hard.

Mei stands for some time, staring at the door. She slowly walks and picks up the shattered picture on the way to the living room and slumps on the sofa. Lighting flashes as rain begins to pummel the windows of the living room. Mei looks at the picture through tear-filled eyes.

It was their wedding day picture with a crack that ran between them now.

Mei embraces the picture as she lays on the couch with her legs curled up to her chest.

And cries bitterly into the stormy night.


	2. Office Visits

He stands, looking out of the window of his office. He is tired from a long trip but news has reached him, news that unsettled him.

A knock is heard at the door.

"Enter"

The door opens and Mei enters the office.

"Greetings grandfather, how was your trip?"

He turns from the window, "It was fruitful, but not important, Tell me about the last board meeting, Did they offer you the chairmanship?"

"Yes," Mei says, not looking at him.

"Unusual that they would just out of the blue, did they want something in return?"

Mei hesitates, then nods.

"Well, what was it?"

"That I... annul the marriage between Yuzu and I."

"I assume you told them no."

"No, I didn't I agreed to the concession."

"You did what!?"

Mei bows low in front of her grandfather, "I agreed to the-"

"Oh, Mei, you're so smart yet you do foolish things, " He sighs, "Did you sign any document saying you would?"

Mei doesn't answer, she just looks down on the floor.

"Oh heavens! You did, didn't you?"

"Is there anything that can be done to undo this?" Mei pleads.

Mei's Grandfather looks at her with sad eyes, "I'm afraid I can't do anything about this Mei."

Mei falls to her knees, "My God what have I done? I'm so sorry! I don't want this!"

Her grandfather sighs as he helps her up to her feet, "Mei, I'm not the one whom you should seek forgiveness from, and now it's one way or the other, The chairmanship, or your marriage, You need to get ahold of Yuzu to figure something out."

"I've tried, she won't answer her phone."

"Try again."

Mei pulls out her phone and begins to call Yuzu.

Yuzu walks down the hallway of the college to her professor's office. Her attention is brought down to her phone but upon seeing the caller ID she denies the call.

She gets to the office door and knocks.

"Come in," came a reply.

Yuzu opens the door and sees two men near the desk. One man is her business professor. The other man is a red-haired foreigner with a jolly smile.

"Yuzu, what a coincidence, I was just talking about you to Professor Sullivan here."

Did I come at a bad time? I can come back later."

"Oh no, What can I do for you?"

"I came to tell you that I am withdrawing from the University sir." Yuzu states.

"What? Why?"

Professor Sullivan stands up before Yuzu says anything.

"A moment lass if you please, My I see her file you were going to send to me."

He takes the file from Yuzu's professor and opens it to look at it.

"Hmm... Good marks... Overall a promising career, " he starts.

Yuzu keeps her eyes looking at the floor.

"However, this isn't something that is thrown away over a broken heart," he says looking over the top of the file.

Yuzu looks up in surprise at the newcomer.

"How do you know that?" asks his colleague.

"Why it's as plain as my red hair! Look at her, she is utterly devastated, Now lass, what did he do? Something stupid I suppose," he reasons.

"She, What did she do you mean," Yuzu corrects quietly.

Sullivan looks back at his colleague then back to Yuzu, "I'm sorry, forgive me for assuming such things, but what was your plan afterward?"

"I don't know, go somewhere, anywhere except being here where she is right now, " Yuzu says quietly as if she didn't believe that it was her saying it.

"Then how about studying overseas, In Ireland, as part of our cultural exchange of business courses?"

Yuzu looks at Sullivan with a sad look, "I may have some legal things I have to attend to first with my soon to be ex-wife I guess."

"I see, Well I'm offering you a spot in the course after you handle your legal obligations first, and if you work it out with your wife then that will be ok with us, just don't quit and throw away a promising career," offers Sullivan.

"I don't know, it all seems too much I'll have to think about it."

"Then here, this is my card call me with your answer, We can have everything you need to travel completely paid for by me, visas, travel expenses, everything, We have been watching you with great interest and you are the perfect candidate for this mutual project between our two nations," says Sullivan.

Yuzu stands and takes his card, turns to exit the office.

"I will let you know soon Professor Sullivan."


	3. The Departure

Mei hurries down the hallway. It's has been some time since she was here. She comes to a door, a door that opened a new experience for her years ago. She knocks urgently on the closed door.

"Come on, open!" Mei hisses as she knocks again.

The door opens and Ume appears from behind it.

"Mei! It's so nice to see you, why are you here though?" Ume inquiries.

Mei moves past her stepmother, "Hello mother, is Yuzu here?"

Ume follows the rushing Mei down the small hallway and to the left to her children's old bedroom that they shared together.

Mei opens the door only to find the room devoid of occupation, only a bed, and an empty bookcase, no personal belongings. Mei stands dumbfounded, looking about when Ume finally appears after her.

"She's gone Mei, she left about thirty minutes ago for the airport," Ume says with a saddened look on her face.

Mei looks at Ume for a moment, then without another word, she hurries out of the apartment and onto her car. Ume follows her to the door of the apartment and watches in bewilderment as Mei leaves.

As Mei drives, her mind goes back to that day at the lawyer's office. The look on Yuzu's face as she signs and closes the folder containing the legal documents that ended their marriage. The look on her face when she announced she was leaving Japan and how it was no concern of Mei's of the reason why.

Mei pulls in at the airport parking lot and rushes out into the airport terminal. Passengers and employees of the airport move back and forth, in a very busy airport. Mei searches the faces of the passengers as she makes her way down the line of terminals, desperately searching for Yuzu.

Suddenly, Mei's eyes widen as Yuzu's chestnut hair comes into sight. She fights through the crowd of people, desperately trying to get to Yuzu before she enters the security section of the terminal.

"Yuzu! Wait!" Mei screams.

Yuzu looks around, searching for the source of the scream. Her eyes settle on Mei's lavender eyes.

"Mei? What are you doing here?" Yuzu asks stoically?

Mei ignores the attitude from Yuzu's question, "Yuzu, please listen to me, I don't want the chairmanship, I don't want to lose you, I want to stop the divorce! I want to put everything back the way it was, please just come back with me."

Yuzu looks at Mei with wide-eyed bewilderment. She lowers her eyes as she steps a little closer to Mei.

"No."

Mei blinks with disbelief. She never had Yuzu just outright refuse her before.

"What?" Mei asks sadly.

Yuzu's sad eyes met Mei's, "Ever since the beginning, Mei, I did whatever it took to make your goals a reality."

Mei lowers her gaze to the floor, avoiding the look of Yuzu's eyes. Yuzu straightens up her posture as she tightens her grip on her carry on luggage.

"But now it's my turn, Mei, my turn, I have to do this for myself, I am already contractually obligated to leave but more importantly I am going this for me, Mei, you understand?"

Mei sadly nods as tears begin to form in her eyes. Yuzu kisses the melancholy Mei gently on the cheek and gives Mei's shoulder a squeeze.

"Goodbye, Mei."

The words hurt Mei to her core. She watches Yuzu enter the secure area of the terminal. She slowly turns away and quietly leaves the airport. As she sits in the parking lot, she watches a plane rise into the air.

"Will I ever see her again?" Mei wonders.

Some years later...

A taxi stops at the crosswalk in front of the Aihara Academy. The rear window lowers and a head with chestnut color hair peeks out.

"There it is Ian, your new school, " Yuzu says as a brown-haired teenage boy leans over to look.

The pair observe a black-haired girl separate from a group and stop to speak to a woman who shares her features. The girl then bows and leaves the woman who begins to close the gate to the Academy. Yuzu gasps as she recognizes the woman.

"Mei," Yuzu whispers to herself.

"What's that ma?" Ian asks.

"Oh, nothing dear," Yuzu answers as the taxi leaves.

Their departure is noticed by the chairwoman Mei, who thinks she recognizes the woman passenger. She watches a moment as the taxi moves down the road. She slightly smiles as she enters the Academy, where a teacher notices her.

"Everything in order ma'am?"

Mei looks back outside the Academy, "Yes, I think that everything is as it should be."

Mei begins to hum to herself as she goes down the hall to her office.

**The End**

**Thanks for reading!**


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